I'll Be Home For Christmas
by J.R.R. Not-Tolkien
Summary: It's December 23rd, 1943. Nya Walker misses her overseas husband, Captain Jay, terribly, especially at Christmastime. Will his promise to be home by Christmas he made two years ago still stand?
1. I Miss Him

**Merry Christmas, guys! Woo, only one month into joining FanFiction, and it's already two days til Christmas!**

 **This was just a little two-parter I decided to write for Christmas, since I'm sure as the Overlord is evil that I'm not gonna finish my Christmas Carol in time. Good grief!**

 **I'll post the next part tomorrow, as i'm almost done with it XD. Hope you like it!**

* * *

Part One: I Miss Him

Nya Walker gazed out the window out into the snowy afternoon. It was two days before Christmas, December 23rd, 1943. Her husband, Captain Jay Walker, was overseas in England, working in a hospital in London. It was hard for her when he was called to the war two years ago. They had just had their fourth child, a little girl named Mary, and their other children, then seven-year-old twins Jack and Julia, and five-year-old Max, were terrified to hear the news that their daddy was going to England in the midst of this catastrophic war.

When Nya voiced both their and her own concerns, Jay had assured her, with that same gentle smile of his he had specially for her, that he'd be home by Christmas. "You can count on me," he'd said, kissing her on the cheek.

That was two years ago, and he still wasn't home.

* * *

Nine-year-old Jack playfully threw a snowball at his brother. "Come on, Max!" he called. "Stop building that snowman and play with Jules and me!"

Seven-year-old Max shook his head. "Nope, I'm not stoppin' 'til it's stopped," he said stubbornly, pounding snow almost ferociously into his snowman.

Jack's twin sister Julia asked curiously, "What's he s'posed to be?"

"He's s'posed to be a nasty German soldier," Max said solemnly, glaring at the snowman with contempt. "I'm gonna let Daddy kick 'im over when he gets home."

"But Dad isn't coming home yet," Jack pointed out. Julia stepped on his foot. "Hey, what was that for?" he demanded.

"He's gonna come home," Max said. "Don't you remember? He said he'd be home by Christmas!"

"But he said that two Christmases ago!" Jack protested. Julia stepped on his foot again, harder this time. "OW!"

"Don't stifle his hopes, Jack!" Julia scolded. "Mary doesn't even remember Dad, and just because Mom told her Dad would be home soon, Mary thinks he's gonna be home by Christmas too!"

"Aw, you sound like Mom," Jack muttered.

While the twins were bickering, Max finished his snowman. "There! All done!" he said. Noticing that his two siblings weren't paying attention, he slyly scooped up a snowball in his blue-mittened hand and threw it. It hit Jack squarely in the face.

"Hey!" Jack yelled. Max grinned. A few seconds later, Jack was grinning back. "I'll get you, Maxie!" He balled up another hunk of snow and threw it at his younger brother, hitting him on the jacket. Max retaliated with another snowball, but instead of hitting Jack, it hit Julia.

"Oops," Max squeaked at the look on his sister's face.

"This means war, Max Walker!" Julia yelled, and threw a snowball at him. Soon, snowballs were flying all over the Walker's front yard, and Max, Jack, and Julia were shrieking with delight as they pelted each other with snow.

* * *

Inside the house, Nya watched her children's snowball battle with amusement. "Oh, those kids," she said out loud, smiling as she saw the kids' gleeful faces as they battered each other with balls of ice and snow. "They're just like their father. If Jay were here, he'd be laughing and shouting with the rest of them."

Her smile faded slightly as she thought of her beloved husband. She couldn't think of Jay's bright blue eyes, playful smile, tousled auburn hair, and light voice without imagining him in his captain's uniform, fighting on the battlefield. Even though she knew that last part was her own imagining, she couldn't help wishing he was there, celebrating the Christmas season with his family. Especially since this year, her brother Kai and his wife, Candy, were coming to visit for Christmas Eve service and Christmas Day. Because his work as a biochemist was too important for him to go to war, Kai hadn't been called to Europe.

"Mommy?" A small hand tugged on her skirt. Nya glanced down to see her youngest daughter, Mary, gazing up at her with baby-blue eyes. Nya felt a twinge of pain. Mary had gotten her father's looks, just like her oldest, Jack, did. Whenever she saw either one, it reminded her of her faraway husband. "Are you okay?" Mary asked.

Nya smiled. For a girl of almost three, Mary was remarkable perceptive. "I'm just thinking, sweetheart," she said, turning away from the window. "Do you want to go outside?"

"Not yet," Mary replied. She looked at her mother inquisitively. "You thinkin' 'bout Daddy?"

Nya tried to hold her smile. "Yes, I am," she said quietly.

"He's thinkin' 'bout you too, Mommy," Mary said. The way she said it, so resolutely, yet so faithfully, made Nya almost think it was true.

"I wish it was true," she said. "I know your father loves me, and I'd like to think he was thinking about me, but I don't know." She rested her chin in her hands.

"If he wuves you, Mommy," Mary said solemnly, "he'd always be thinkin' 'bout you."

Nya's smile became more sad. Mary was wiser beyond her years, that was for sure. "You're right," she said, eyes filling up with tears. "He would."

"Can I go an' play ou'side now?" Mary asked.

"You may," Nya said. "Just get your coat, mittens, scarf, hat, and boots on, and tell Jackie, Maxie, and Julie to play nice, okay?"

"Okay," Mary said happily, skipping off.

Nya turned back to the window, gazing back up into the cloudy blue winter sky. "Oh, God," she whispered softly, "please bring Jay home. Please bring Jay home for Christmas."


	2. A Blessed Surprise

**Hey guys! Whew! This part turned out to be waaaaay longer than I expected! But since I said it's a two parter, it's a two parter. Just one part happens to be longer by the other part by a bajillion words XD**

 **If you want to hear the song that inspired me to write this story, look up "duck commander i'll be home for christmas" on YouTube, minus the quotation marks.**

 **It's the Duck Dynasty rendition of "I'll Be Home For Christmas", sung by Missy Robertson. Not sure if that means anything to you readers, but you'll really like it.**

 **Oh, in case you're wondering who Candy is, she's an OC I made who I ship with Kai. Even their names sound cute together :D**

 **So, enjoy this final part of "I'll Be Home For Christmas".**

* * *

Part Two: A Blessed Surprise

"Mom! When are Uncle Kai and Aunt Candy comin'?" Jack called, taking his boots off and shaking the snow off his jacket.

"Wipe your feet before coming in," Nya called back absently. "They'll be here about a couple hours before the Christmas Eve service."

"I can't wait for Daddy to come home!" Max cried happily, bouncing around the kitchen. "Then I'll let him kick over my snowman!"

Nya sighed. "Max, dear, I'm not sure you should get your hopes up about your father coming home this Christmas," she said gently, placing a hand on her youngest son's shoulder.

"But Mommy," Max said plaintively, "he said he'll be home for Christmas! He's gonna!"

Nya knew she couldn't get the notion out of Max's head, so she gave up, smiling weakly. "Where's Julia and Mary?" she asked.

"Mary's in the living room staring out the window, and I think Jules's upstairs in her room getting ready for the Christmas Eve service," Jack answered his mom's question. "She's gonna spend two whole hours trying to pick the right dress and getting her hair right." He rolled his eyes. "Girls," he muttered.

Nya ruffled her son's hair. "You go clean yourself up a bit, you want to look nice for your aunt and uncle, don't you?"

"Aw, Mom!" Jack complained. But when Nya gave him a look, he put his hands up in surrender. "All right, all right, I'm going!" he called over his shoulder as he dashed for his room.

Nya shook her head. "He's incorrigible," she said.

"Is that some kind of car?" Max asked curiously.

Nya laughed. "No, Maxie, it means . . . you know, I'm not actually sure what it means, exactly. I guess it means . . . impossible."

"How can Jack be impossible?" Max said, amazed. "No person can be impossible!"

"I used to think that too," Nya said. "Until I met Jay . . ." She trailed off, quickly swiping at her eyes to keep her son from seeing her cry.

Max _had_ noticed her tears. "It's okay, Mommy," he said, gently placing a hand on her arm. "Daddy's gonna come home. He promised you. And Daddy always keeps his promises."

Nya smiled weakly through her tears. "You're right, sweetie," she said, kissing her youngest son on the top of the head. "Now, go and clean yourself up, Maxie, Uncle Kai and Aunt Candy will be here soon."

* * *

A few hours later, Nya and her four children were sitting in the living room, admiring the brightly lit Christmas tree. The red-white-and-blue lights blinked and twinkled as the last light of the sunset faded away, leaving their street black except for the lights of the houses and the lanterns of carolers getting in some final songs before heading to the Christmas Eve service.

"Who's gonna hang the mistletoe over the fireplace, Mom?" Julia asked. As Jack had predicted, she had spent the majority of the afternoon in her room, finally deciding on a red sateen dress, black Mary Janes, white tights, and tying her long black hair back with a matching red bow. Jack had brushed his messy auburn hair the best he could, and wore a blue sweater vest over a white collared shirt, tan pants, and brown dress shoes. Max wore a similar outfit to his older brother's, just with a red sweater vest. And Mary looked almost identical to Julia, except that her dress was bright blue, and her short auburn hair had a blue bow in it.

Nya was wearing a blue dress tied with a red sash, with a golden heart-shaped locket around her neck. It contained a miniature photo of Jay, dressed in his captain's uniform, smiling teasingly up at her every time she opened it. "I'm not sure if we should do that this year, Jules," she said in reply to her daughter's question.

"But Mom, it's been a Walker tradition since you and Dad got married!" Jack protested. "We can't break it now!" He must have been able to read his mother's thoughts, because he said, "Just because Dad's not home doesn't mean we still can't do it."

Nya sighed. She knew Jack had a point. "All right," she said. "Mary hasn't done it yet, so this year, she gets to hang the mistletoe. I'll be right back." She hurried to the kitchen to go get the sprig of fresh mistletoe hanging in the window.

 _Knock! Knock! Knock!_ Nya sighed. "That'd be Kai and Candy," she murmured, leaving the mistletoe behind to go answer the door. "Wait in the living room, kids!" she called.

She opened the door. Her older brother stood on the doorstep, with his wife on his arm. "Merry Christmas, Nya!" Kai said, smiling at his younger sister.

"Merry Christmas, Kai," Nya replied, smiling back. "And merry Christmas, Candy! It's been so long since I've last seen both of you!"

Candy smiled happily back. "I've been missing you so much, Nya!" she said, giving her sister-in-law a hug. "It's so good to see you again."

Speaking of missing people made Nya's heart ache a little bit. Kai noticed his sister's mood change slightly. "Are you alright, Nya?" he asked, concerned.

Nya nodded, but she couldn't hide her slight jealousy that Candy still had her husband home and safe. "I . . . I just miss Jay so much," she murmured, giving her eyes another swipe.

To her surprise, both Kai and Candy grinned broadly at her. "Why don't you tell him yourself?" Kai asked.

Nya was startled. "How can I tell him? He's not even here!"

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," said a third voice, from behind Kai and Candy. The couple stepped aside to reveal-no, that couldn't be right-

"Jay?" Nya whispered, eyes widening, pressing a hand involuntarily to her heart.

Her husband smiled back at her. "It's me, sweetheart," Jay said.

Nya let out a little scream of delight. "JAY!" Jay opened his arms as Nya ran forward and hugged him. His captain's hat fell off as he wrapped his arms around her, falling to his knees on the doorstep. "Oh, Jay!" Nya sobbed, happy tears streaming down her cheeks as Jay held her. "I've missed you so much! And now you're really home! God's answered my prayer!"

"He's answered mine as well, darling Nya," Jay said, stroking her hair, his gentle hands giving Nya a feeling of protection she hadn't felt since he had gone to England. "You don't know how long I've missed seeing your beautiful face."

The two finally reunited held each other for what seemed like hours to Nya. She never wanted to let go. Then, Jay picked her up, and laughing, twirled her around in the air, just like he used to when he came home from work. Nya laughed as she gazed happily into Jay's face. His bright blue eyes, his playful smile, his messy auburn hair, even that nick in his right eyebrow, it was all there. Her husband hadn't changed at all in two years.

Jay set Nya down on the doorstep, though she could tell it was with reluctance. She picked up his hat and handed it to him with a smile. He grinned as he fixed it back on his head. "Where are the kids?" he asked, looking through the doorway. "I haven't known any of them to sit still for very long."

"I'll go get them," Nya said, almost skipping as she went back into the house. "Kids!" she called. "There's someone here who's eager to see you!"

"Is it Uncle Kai and Aunt Candy?" Jack called back. "Because if it is, tell 'em to come inside! It's too cold out there!"

Nya sighed. "Should I tell them to come out, or should we go in?" she asked.

Her brother and husband grinned. "It'd give them a bigger surprise if we went in," Jay said.

Nya grinned back. Then she called back into the house, "All right, they're coming!"

Jay scooped her up in his arms and carried her, bridal style, into the house, followed by Kai and Candy.

* * *

When Jack, Julia, Max, and Mary saw their dad, dressed in his army uniform, carrying their mom into the house, they just stared, open-mouthed at their smiling father and mother. Finally, Julia screamed, "DADDY!"

Jay set Nya down, and spread his arms as his four kids ran forward and tackled him, knocking him to the floor in their excitement to see their father. "I knew you'd be home at Christmas!" Max cried, wrapping his arms around Jay's waist.

"I can't believe you're home!" Julia cried, all worries of wrecking her hair and dress forgotten as she hugged her dad, tears running down her cheeks.

"One at a time, you four!" Candy laughed. "You're going to suffocate your father and he just got home!"

Jay was laughing as his kids released him. "That's the second time someone's so happy to see me my hat gets knocked off!" he joked, scooping his hat back up as he got to his feet. "Only this time it's four someones!"

He gazed down at his four children with something like pride and amazement. "I've been gone only two years and you've grown so much since I last saw you!" he exclaimed. "I'll bet that if I kneel down, you're gonna be taller than me," he said, winking at the twins.

"I'm not sure so about that, Jay," Kai said, laughing. "You're pretty tall!"

"Watch and learn, Mr. Chemist," Jay said, getting down on his knees. Before Kai could notice that he was still taller than the twins on his knees, he got so low so he was practically bent double. "See? Good grief, they're waaaay taller than me!" he said, laughing. His kids laughed at their dad's antics.

Kai rolled his eyes. His brother-in-law was such a goofball, he was surprised he had been called to Europe. Jay got back up to his proper kneeling height, so he was just a little taller than Jack and Julia. After a closer look, he frowned quizzically at his oldest son. "Is it just me, or does it feel like I'm looking into a mirror?" he asked, putting a hand on Jack's shoulder as he glanced up at his wife.

Nya shook her head. "It's not just you," she said, smiling. "If I didn't know better, I'd say Jack's your younger identical twin!"

Jack grinned as his dad turned back to him with an amused expression. "The only thing you're missing is an army hat," he said. He stuck his hand under his jacket and felt around in it. "Oh, shoot, where did I put it-oh, here it is!" He produced a smaller version of his own captain's hat out from under his coat, and placed it on his son's head. "Fits perfectly!" he said.

Jack was pleased with his surprise gift. "I've always wanted one of these!" he exclaimed happily, taking the hat off and examining it. "It's even got my name inside it!"

"Glad you like it," Jay said, smiling. "I've got another present for you too, but that's for tomorrow."

Next, Jay placed his hands on Julia's shoulders. "My word, Jules, you've become a beautiful young lady, just like your mother," he told her with a wink.

Julia giggled, and blushed at her father's praise. "Now, I've got something almost as pretty as you in here somewhere-" Jay stuck his hand in his pocket, feeling around a little before producing a carefully wrapped package, which he handed to his daughter. "Be gentle with it, it's pretty delicate," he warned.

Julia carefully unwrapped the small package. She squealed as a silver necklace with a ruby-red pendant lay in her palms. "Oh, Daddy, it's beautiful!" She gave her father a shy glance. "Could you help me put it on?"

"Of course, sweetheart!" Jay gently placed the necklace around his daughter's neck. "It's very becoming on you, little jewel," he smiled. Julia beamed.

Jay then turned to his youngest son. Before he could say anything, Max asked eagerly, "Did you see my snowman outside?"

Jay was slightly surprised. "I think so, Maxie," he said, a little confused.

"I built it yesterday!" Max said proudly. "It's a bad German soldier, and I was waiting for you to come home so you could kick 'im over!"

Jay burst out laughing. "Do you want me to kick it now?" he asked, grinning.

"Yes, please!" Max said happily, grabbing his dad's hand and practically dragging him outside, followed by Nya, Kai, Candy, Jack, Julia, and Mary.

Once they got onto the front lawn, Max pointed to the scowling snowman, stick arm raised in Hitler salute, sitting in front of the window. Jay fake-glowered at the snowman, much to his son's delight. "How do want me to take care of him, General Max?" he asked.

"Just kick 'im 'til he goes kablooey!" Max ordered.

Jay marched up to the snowman and gave it a strong kick. But instead of knocking it over, his foot firmly buried itself into the snowman's chest. The captain had a hard time tugging his leg out of the snowman, which resulted with peals of laughter from his watching family. By the time he managed to yank it out, he was pretty annoyed with Max's snowman. "That's it!" he yelled, giving the snowman a harder kick, this time knocking its head off. "No one does that to Captain James Walker, least of all a dumb German soldier!"

Max was howling with laughter as his dad kicked the snowman to bits, finally breaking its saluting stick arm over his knee. Jay's shoes and the bottoms of his pants were completely wet with snow, and his face was pink-cheeked and satisfied as he gave the snowman's remains a final boot. "That oughta teach you to mess with a member of the American army!" he said, shaking his finger at the pile of melted snow that had once been the hated German soldier.

Max clapped his hands delightedly. "He went ka-BLOOEY!" he said happily.

Jay saluted to the seven-year-old, while at the same time trying to get something out from under his coat. "Think I might have gotten a bit of snow in here-well, whaddya know?" He pulled a model airplane out from under his jacket.

Max's eyes went wide as he took the offered plane. "AWESOME! A Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress! They're so cool!"

"Y'know, I saw a few of these when I was in England," Jay told Max, and his son's eyes went even wider. "I gotta tell ya, they were awe-inspiring to see. And now you can have your own miniature piece of inspiration." Max gave his dad a hug, throwing his arms around the captain's neck.

Jay stood up, still holding onto Max as he said, "We should go inside before we catch cold. I still have one more little girl I'd like to see."

* * *

Once they were all back in the living room, Jay looked over at his wife. "Where's Mary? Even though I'm not sure whether she'll even know me, I'd still like to see her."

He felt a small hand tug on his pant leg. He looked down, and Mary's blue eyes gazed back up at him. Jay was startled to see how much his youngest daughter looked like him, even more so than when he'd teased Jack by calling him his mirror image. "Hello, little Mary," he said, getting back down on his knees to get closer to her level.

Mary just stared at him, a little curiously, her hands clasped behind her back. "I don't even remember the last time I saw you," he told her quietly. "You were only just born, from what I can recall. And a sweeter baby in my time as a doctor I never did see."

Mary continued to gaze up at her father. Finally, she said, almost in a whisper, "You my daddy?"

Jay nodded. Mary nodded back. "Mommy tol' me 'bout you," she said. "Yes-er-day-" she sounded out the word as best she could "-she was sad 'cause she was thinkin' 'bout you and mizzed you. I said if you wuved her, you'd be thinkin' 'bout her too." She gave him a quizzical look. "Were you?" she asked.

Jay was amazed at how bright Mary was, and how mature she was, even at the age of two. "As a matter of fact," he said, glancing first at Mary, then up at Nya, "I thought about her every waking moment of my day, and about how much I wanted to see her again."

Mary gave her mother a triumphant smile. "I tol' you, Mommy!" she said ecstatically. "He does wuve you!"

Nya was smiling through tear-filled amber eyes as she nodded at Mary. "Yes, he does," she said, joining Jay on his knees on the hardwood floor.

Jay gave his wife a nervous look. "I had a bit of a hard time trying to find something that Mary would like, because I never really knew her," he whispered behind his hand, "so I hope this is okay." He stuck his hand under his jacket for the third time, and produced another package, slightly fatter than the others he had hidden under there. He gave it to Mary, whose blue eyes had gone wide. "Open it," Jay said kindly. "It's for you."

Mary eagerly tore the paper off to reveal a soft, plump teddy bear, dressed in a white nurse's uniform. She hugged it tightly, a happy smile on her little face. "I wuve her," she whispered, her voice filled with pure adoration for both the gift and the giver.

Jay's smile was slightly surprised, but also pleased. "Looks like I struck gold on that guess, didn't I, dear?" he whispered to Nya, who giggled.

"You don't know how lucky that guess was," she whispered back, as Mary cuddled the teddy bear in her arms.

* * *

As the Christmas Eve service drew to a close, and the congregation joined the choir in singing "Silent Night", Nya gazed up in rapture at her husband standing beside her, and felt the blue heart pendant hanging around her neck. Jay hadn't left her out when picking presents for his family. The necklace had been made by one of the best jewelers in London, and it matched perfectly with the silver locket that was hanging beside it.

"'Jesus, Lord at thy bi-i-irth! Je-e-esus, Lord at thy bi-i-irth . . .'" Jay's light voice was the only one Nya could hear. She couldn't believe it. Her husband was home, and he wasn't going back to England. He had explained that he had been transferred back to the local hospital to care for the wounded soldiers who had been sent back to the States. She didn't know how this Christmas could get better . . .

* * *

Jay put his arm around Nya as they sat on the couch in front of the fire. Kai and Candy had gone home after the service, and the kids had been put to bed. Jay couldn't believe that he was finally home, with his beloved wife at his side, just like he'd imagined it back in England.

The singer on the radio was crooning, "I'll be ho-o-ome for Christmas, you can count on me-e-e . . ."

"Guess I kept my promise after all," Jay said, smiling at Nya. "I did come home for Christmas."

Nya smiled back up at him, her beautiful amber eyes glowing in the firelight. "Yes, you did," she replied. "And that's the best Christmas gift I ever could have gotten."

Jay raised an eyebrow. "Better than this?" He leaned down and kissed her, putting his free arm around her waist. Nya put her arms around his neck and kissed him back.

Nothing could have disturbed this happy couple in their blissful embrace.

* * *

 **And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.**

 **An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.**

 **But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.**

 **Today in the town of David a savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.**

 **This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."**

 **Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,**

 **Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.**

 **Luke 2:8-14**

 **Merry Christmas, everyone, from NinjagoMasterOfTheForce!**

 **#God's Not Dead!**

 **#Lightning Forever!**


End file.
